Vlad K.
Yelp
For a high end concept restaurant one can do better, much better. As a matter of fact, in our case better was hot dogs and burgers stand on the corner. I wish I was kidding or exaggerating.
We went with high expectations after getting a recommendation from a friend and taking a look at the website and the menu. I mean, once you look over it, it does sound amazing, doesn't it?
Anyway, we freshened up and braved through the below zero temperatures to get to taste the wonderful things that the menu had promised us.
The restaurant is located inside the same building as the W hotel and the building is stunning. It feels like you are walking into a place from almost a hundred years ago.. alas, looks can be deceiving. It all started okay. We got introduced to our server, got a bottle of water and placed order for drinks there were absolutely great, except it took 15 minutes to get them and even our server had to apologize and say that she is not sure why it's taking so long. It should have been a warning. Granted the drinks were good, still...
We ordered three appetizers and one main course to share. The first appetizer was oysters and it was darn good but it's very difficult to ruin good oysters. The second one was beef tartare and arguably it was the best I've had.
Sadly that's all the positives I can mention.
The bread that came with tomato and pepper should have been amazing but the bread and tomato were extremely oversalted - at some point I took a bite and it was nothing but salt! Similarly, baby eel was not just oversalted, it tasted of nothing but salt.
While the trio of appetizers arrived at a fairly reasonable time, the 10 mushroom risotto that made me salivate when I read the menu, was taking upwards to an hour to get to our table. At about 45 minute mark or so, our server stopped by to say that the risotto is going to be out in a minute. Fifteen minutes later we asked to cancel it and get our check.
Over the course of an hour and forty minutes we were not asked even once whether we'd like more water ( we did) or more bread (we did) or to order something else....
In addition there a gentleman with an overgrown mustache who was very impatient and abrasive and a dictionary definition of condescending prick and alpha-male mainsplainer douche who made it a point to turn his nose up and remove everything from the table the millisecond it was no longer necessary. Of course, when we actually need someone in charge, he was nowhere to be found. Once we have politely asked our server to cancel the risotto and bring our check, The Overgrown Mustache decided to inquire if everything is okay with the fakest smile I've seen in person. When I told him that I've had dinners at most iron chefs restaurants and multiple Michelin star restaurants and this was by far the worst, he somehow managed to impart on us that he would rather we not pay the €180, however this was not offered as an apology for a bad service or no, this was offered as the most condescending slap in a face "you plebs" way that we 7 out of general principal.
Literally the worst birthday experience and the worst dinner in Europe I've ever had.